Another Battōsai
by an InuHanyou by birth
Summary: Set after the battle with Shishio and the Child of God. Just like usual, the Kenshin-gumi seems to get mixed up with someone who is anything but ordinary. Then 'Battōsai' strikes again! And a new enemy appears set on revenge.
1. The Female Rurouni: Sannai

Disclaimer: I Do NOT own Rurouni Kenshin, that right belongs to Nobuhiro Watsuki. This story is strictly fan-based. I do, however, own Sannai Erina

* * *

**The Female Rurouni: Sannai ****Erina **

During the Revolution there was swords woman who matched the reputation of the Legendary Hitokiri Battōsai. When she joined the Ishin Shishi, no one took her seriously because she was a young girl at the age of twelve. However she

proved herself after saving her commander from an ambush of twenty men, without getting a scratch on her or even breaking a sweat! Throughout the years her reputation grew and she gained the name Lady Battōsai. Then, when she

was assigned stealth missions, she gained the name Shadow Vixen. However, a year before the war ended, she disappeared. A rumor spread claiming that the reason she left was because she was beaten and was unable to wield a

sword and that she left Japan, never to return again.

~o~o~o~o~o~

The marketplace in Tokyo Japan was rather empty this time of day in the Meji Era. People were just starting to wake up from their nightly slumber and early risers were just starting to open up shop. A woman was walking down the road

with a sword at her hip, when a whistle was heard. She froze and slowly turned to see a police officer running after her, waving his baton around in the air. She gulped and made a break for it. The officer continued to chase her, blowing

his whistle and yelling at her to stop. She bumped into a few people but then sensed a strong presence and dodged that person with ease. The man she dodged saw her in distress and stepped in front of her, stopping the officer. "Is

there a problem, officer?" The man asked calmly. "This young lady is breaking the sword banning act!" He informed him, pointing at the woman's weapon on her hip. The man looked and saw the sword, blinking his eyes as if he hadn't

noticed it before. He looked back at the officer and chuckled a bit. "Officer, I'm sure that you could pardon her. I, too, wear a sword, that I do." He said moving his sword a bit to show him. "Sir Himora, you have special privileges that this

woman does not. She could be a threat. Perhaps the one that has been committing the murders as of late." At this information and accusation, the woman stepped in to defend herself. "I just arrived in this town. I am merely passing

through. I don't go around killing for pleasure. Please do not accuse me of anything unless you have accurate evidence." At her small speech, the officer blinked, surprised that she had defended herself so well. Still, he was not going to let

it go that easily. It seemed that the man, Himora, could tell and spoke up once again. "I do not feel any murderous intentions from this woman, that I do not. Please pardon her during her stay here. If she causes trouble I will take full

responsibility for her actions, that I will." He was smiling throughout his plea and the officer clicked his tongue, then glared at the woman who jumped a bit and blinked, straightening up. "If I catch you around without Sir Himora I will arrest

you. You are pardoned for right now." He then turned and left. The woman sighed in relief and slouched a bit. She turned to Himora and bowed slightly. "Thank you for your help, sir. I really appreciate it." She straightened up and smiled at

the red-haired man. She noticed that he was carrying a rather lot of items. She offered to help him carry them to his home as a thank you, and after a small, friendly argument, he gave in and allowed her to help him. She carried a bag of

rice and the bean dip as he carried another bag of rice and soy sauce.

~o~o~o~o~o~

The building they had walked to was a dojo that's condition was a bit run down. A young boy ran up to them and asked who the girl was, taking the items from her person. "I am simply a rurouni that is thanking this man for helping me

out earlier." The boy looked her over, suspicion clearly written over his face. Then he glanced at her sword and looked at Himora. The man nodded and the boy smiled and then walked away, she guessed to put the food away. "Thank

you for your help. It took some weight off of my shoulders, that it did." The woman smiled, bowed and told him she'd be on her way. The man watched her leave, watching the sword on her hip. He smiled slightly and walked into the

dojo. "I'm back!" He announced and went to put what he was carrying away. The boy walked up to him, hands behind his head. "Kenshin, who was that?" "Hm? Oh, I do not know. She was being harassed by an officer for bearing a

sword. I simply helped her so she would not be arrested, that I did." He smiled and turned to head outside. He mumbled something about doing the laundry and then noticed that the mistress of the home was not there. The boy,

known as Yahiko, informed him that she was training at a neighboring dojo and would be back later. Kenshin made a mental note to have the bath prepared for her for when she returned. Yahiko laughed and walked away, saying that

she had him whipped. The comment left Kenshin blinking at the boy's retreating form. He shrugged, not taking his words to heart, and went to collect the laundry. He washed them while thinking of what he should make for dinner. But

his thoughts on that topic didn't last long. They wondered to the sword bearing woman he saved earlier. She in fact did not have a murderous aura around her, it was calm and peaceful. And from the way she dodged him he could tell

that she was anything but defenseless. But what was a woman carrying a sword around for? The question remained in his head since he noticed it when the officer pointed it out. He finished the laundry faster than he thought and got

up to hang them up to dry. He dismissed the question from his mind, he doubted he'd see her again. So he wouldn't let it bother him. "Perhaps I'll make stew tonight." He thought out loud as he draped the clothing over the ropes.

~o~o~o~o~o~

The rurouni woman from before sat down at a table at the well known Akabeko with a bowl of beef pot in front of her. She bowed her head and whispered; " Itadakimasu" before breaking her chopsticks apart and beginning to eat. The

food was heaven in her mouth. It had been so long since she had a decent meal. As she ate she kept feeling a disturbing presence around her and it was upsetting her somewhat. Then, before she knew it, she felt the presence come

closer to her. She knew that avoiding the confrontation was impossible. She just wanted to finish her meal and not waste any of the food she was served. Not have to deal with thugs. A man, obviously drunk, leaned against one of the

thin paper walls that separated her booth from the others. She could smell the alcohol coming from him and it disgusted her how strong it was. "Hey beautiful. I noticed you were...sitting here all alone. Would you like to...j-join me and

my friends for a drink or two?" The woman just ignored him and took another bite of her meal. The guy waited a short while before getting irritated for not getting an answer. "Hey you stupid bitch! I asked you a question! Did you not

hear me?" He was rather loud with the insult. After putting the last bit of food in her mouth, she set the utensil she ate with down then looked up at the man, blinking her green eyes at him. "I heard you quite well. Forgive me, but I

have no intension on having alcohol today." She refused the drunk's offer politely. She stood up while placing her sword on her hip and walked past him, intent on finding the owner and paying for her meal. However, it seemed that the

man was not satisfied with her answer. He grabbed her arm and tugged her backwards. "You're breaking the law by bearing a sword. How about a bet? You challenge me and my friends. And if we win you spend the rest of the

afternoon and the evening with us." He challenged in a rather annoyed tone of voice. The woman sighed and gently removed his tight grip from her arm. "I try to avoid violence. So please accept my refusal." Then the man grabbed the

young waitress and held a knife to her throat. "I insist. Or I might accidently hurt this young girl." Green eyes instantly hardened and he nicked her neck causing her to wince and bleed a bit. She glared at the man slightly. "Fine. I accept

the challenge. Now release the girl." The man let her go but one of his friend grabbed her. "Need to keep her hostage. I hope you can understand." The glare darkened a bit more.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"Is there really no other way to avoid this confrontation?" The green eyed woman asked with a soft sigh. Though she knew that the only way was to have a drink with this man and his friends. Which she would not do. All the men that

wanted to drink with her surrounded her. At the scene, a crowd formed with curious townspeople. She sighed once again and rested her left arm over her sword. Two of the five people that had surrounded her charged at her and after

a swift movement of her sword being drawn and swung at the men, they froze in mid-step. The sighed, holding her sword in front of her at a slight angle to the ground, and closed her eyes as a nervous smile appeared on her face. The

men dropped to the ground and the other three, enraged at their friends' easy defeat, charged at her and pulled out hidden knives from their sleeves. At the last second, the woman spun around quickly into a crouching pose and

sheathed her sword. The men had shocked expressions plastered on their faces before they fell face first onto the ground. She stood up and sighed. "I would have liked to avoid such actions." The girl that had been used as hostage

was thrown to the ground as the sixth guy ran at her. With ease the green eyed girl pulled her sword from her hip, still sheathed, and hit the guy on the side of his face. He fell to the ground and held his injured face, crying out only once

and calling her many harsh and inappropriate names. She walked over to the guy and kneeled down. Then with three fingers, pinched his neck on his pressure point and knocked him out. She stood, put her sword on her hip, and the

young girl ran to her. She smiled and held her hands to her chest as she bowed. "Thank you for saving me." "Tsubame! Are you alright?" An older woman asked coming to the waitress. The girl nodded and the swordswoman pulled

something from her shirt. "Your wound needs to be treated. Please let me help. You were involved in this incident because of me after all." She pulled out a small, round, metal container and opened it to reveal a salve. She rubbed

some of it onto her fingers before gently wiping the blood away with the side of her hand and then rubbing the ointment onto the cut. "That should help so it won't get infected. But as soon as you can clean it and put a bandage over it."

The girl nodded and smiled at her in understanding. "I'm Sanjo Tsubame, but you may call me by my first name. What's your name?" The woman hesitated, contemplating whether she should introduce herself or not. By now the crowd

had almost completely disappeared, only a few stranglers remained. After smiling at the girl, she answered her. "You may call me Sannai, my surname." She said and bowed her head at the girl. Tsubame smile and giggled a bit.

"Sannai." She tested the name on her tongue and the owner of the restaurant spoke up. "And I'm Sekihara Tae. I apologize for the ruffians and how they treated you." Sannai shook her head and said it was alright. She reached into

her money pouch and pulled out the amount for the food and gave it to Tae before excusing herself and walking away. Tae smiled at her retreating form before looking at the money. Her eyes widened when she saw the amount.

Instead of the bill's amount of one thousand one hundred and twenty-three yen, she gave her two thousand two hundred and forty-six yen! "Oh my!" She explained looking back up to see Sannai gone.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"Kenshin! You wouldn't believe what I saw on my way home!" A young woman exclaimed as she put away her equipment. "Oro? Welcome back Kaoru-dono. What did you see?" Kenshin asked walking into the dojo. Kaoru turned

around, excitement filling her eyes. "I saw a fight today!" "Uh...I'm not so sure that's such a good thing, that I do not." Kaoru shook her head and smiled. "It's not just that. But it was 6 men and a woman bearing a sword!" This got

Kenshin's attention. Could she be the same rurouni woman she saved earlier? "And the most amazing part was that that woman beat them so easily! Not a scratch on her and she didn't look like she was tired in the least! She didn't

even break a sweat! And what surprised me is that they were all alive! Just knocked unconscious." She smiled and stared dreamily at the nothing in particular. "She's my new idol. A woman with such skill." Kenshin looked down at the

floor. His mind filling with a bunch of questions. Was it possible? There were no other woman in Tokyo that bore a sword such as she. He was so deep in thought that he failed to hear Kaoru try to get his attention until she touched his

shoulder, concerned for him. "Kaoru-dono, what did this woman look like?" The question seemed to catch the assistant master off guard. "Well, she had brown hair, green eyes, wore a red kimono and a black hakama. Why do you ask?

Do you know her?" Kenshin shook his head and smiled at the young woman in front of him. "No, not in particularly. I helped her earlier though. She was being assaulted by an officer for bearing a sword in public. I got him to pardon her

for that moment, that I did." Kaoru smiled and nodded, saying that that was very generous of him. "Did you happen to catch her name, by any chance?" Kenshin asked with curiosity in his tone. Kaoru nodded and told him that all she

gave was her surname, Sannai. Kenshin thanked her and after Kaoru described what she saw in a little more detail, the ex-Hitokiri informed her that a bath was prepared for her. She smiled and skipped off to the bath house. Kenshin

smiled slightly at the sight. Seeing a woman with such skill must have made Kaoru rather happy and hopeful of becoming as strong someday. Still, the name bothered him for some reason. "Sannai..." She whispered to himself. Why did

it sound so familiar?

~o~o~o~o~o~

"And you want me to investigate this woman? That doesn't sound like you, Battōsai. Asking for such a thing without any reason." A police officer stated before taking a puff of his cigarette. Kenshin sighed and nodded. "I am well aware

of that Saitou, that I am. It's just that the name has been bothering me for a few days now." The officer known as Saitou let out a breath, a cloud of smoke following it. "The only one who has such a name would be Sannai Erina from the

Bakumatsu. But she disappeared eleven years ago and has yet to be spotted. She has been presumed dead. Has been for five years now." He took another puff of his cigarette and looked up at the ceiling of his office, blowing the

smoke out from his nose. It was quiet for a few moments as Saitou silently contemplated whether or not he would do what Kenshin had requested. There wasn't much to benefit from it. Then again, there wasn't anything to lose, either.

If they searched and did some research, and kept an eye on the rurouni girl that was currently in Tokyo, they may or may now find something. Perhaps see if she was indeed dead or if she settled down somewhere they could put it on

record. He sighed and put out the nicotine stick and rested his elbows on his desk, entwining his fingers together. "Alright. I will see what I can do. I hold no promises though." Kenshin smiled in thanks than excused himself. He was

satisfied with Saitou's choice. If things went well and in his favor, he would find out if this woman was dangerous or not. But Kaoru had mentioned that none of the men that attacked her had been killed, merely knocked out. If she was

innocent he would feel a little guilty. But if she wasn't he would feel a bit better, but he'd have to make sure he kept his friends safe. He sighed and hung his head low and his shoulders sagged. His life was anything but ordinary.

* * *

Y: Yahiko here! Some woman is saying that her husband was killed by Battōsai!

k: It's just like how Kenshin and I met. Someone's killing using his name again!

Y: Shut up Ugly! I'm doing the preview!

k: What did you say? That's it! 400 strokes!

Y: What? 400? That's crazy!

k: Complaining? Fine. Now it's 500.

Y: No way!

k: Owe! Yahiko! That's it, you're going to get it!

K: Now, now. There's no need to fight!

S: Some thing's will never change. Guess it's up to me, Sagara Sanosuke to wrap this up. Next time on Another Battōsai: _Framed: Another Battōsai Appears_. Hey Missy, you got any food around here?

k: Go mooch off someone else!


	2. Framed: Another Battōsai Appears

Disclaimer: I Do NOT own Rurouni Kenshin, that right belongs to Nobuhiro Watsuki. This story is strictly fan-based. I do, however, own Sannai Erina and her late commander, Shiroji Sasuke.

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**Framed: Another Battōsai Appears**

She couldn't stay in Tokyo for much longer. Rumors were starting to spread and she could not allow that. On top of that, for the past week she had a feeling that someone was following her. She ignored it, or at least tried to. The

presence only seemed to be around when she was out in public. It was a police officer, that much she knew. Probably keeping an eye on her in case she tried something. Sannai had worked at the Akebeko when it was busy, always

refusing payment, whether it be in money or with food. On her days off she would wonder around town, chatting with merchants and often buying a few things, mostly food. She enjoyed eating out, but preferred home cooked meals. She

wasn't the best cook, but she was good at it. One had to be able to survive when traveling like she did. She ran into the young boy she saw at the dojo Himora was living at. They talked every now and then and it seemed that he did not

mind her presence. It warmed her heart that he had accepted her. He asked about her sword a few times, either if he could see what kind it was or if he could hold it. She would politely deny him the privileges and he would pout. She had

also gotten into a brawl every so often, but it seemed to die down a considerable amount during her stay. She also met a retired artist. He was not old in the slightest. He just decided to give it up and became a journalist instead. His

name was Tsukioka Tsunan, but he asked her to call him Katsu instead. She happily agreed. They kept each other company whenever they wanted someone to talk to. Katsu often asked her for any information she had about the world.

She agreed to answer his questions whenever he asked them, but he had to paint something for her. He thought it was amusing and accepted the trade. He ended up painting her late commander; Shiroji Sasuke. She kept it rolled up and

in her shirt for safe keeping. He warned her that it may get ruined if she should get attacked and injured. She knew it was true, however she had nowhere else to place it. So he told her that if something were to happened to it he would

paint another one for her. Tae mistook them as a couple once and they both burst out laughing, saying they were just friends. Sannai sighed as she stood up from sitting on the ground in front of the Akabeko. She had gained many

memories in Tokyo. She had informed Katsu, Tae, Tsubame, and Yahiko that she would be leaving soon, but she promised to visit them again.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Yahiko was in a rather sour mood and everyone took notice of it. When asked what was wrong, he would snap and say "it's nothing". He had trained extra hard that day and rarely ate. Sanosuke would pester him about the possibility

that he was sick and had the local doctor, Doctor Genzai, take a look at him while Megumi, his assistant, was out of town. He clarified that there was nothing wrong with the boy, but perhaps he was just having a bad day. Yea, that was it

alright. He was having a rather bad day. He woke up to find out that Kaoru had cooked breakfast and then when he went out to meet Sannai as planned, he found out she was leaving. And that very night too! He thought that if he

trained extra hard it would help him relieve his anger, but found that it did nothing except somehow make him more upset. He was walking around the dojo when an officer walked up to the main entrance. "Excuse me. Would Sir Himora be

at home?" He asked catching Yahiko's attention. The boy nodded and called for Kenshin, saying that a police officer was here to see him. Kenshin appeared to greeted the man and asked him what he could assist him with. "Ah, Sir Himora.

I'd like to talk to you about the murders that have been happening recently." Kenshin smiled nervously as he dried his hands on the towel he held in his hands. "I don't see how that has anything to do with me, that I don't." The officer

sighed and closed his eye, nodding once. "Naturally that would be the case. You have told us before that you would prefer not to be involved in such events. However..." He opened his eyes and looked at the ground as if thinking on how

to say something. He looked up at Kenshin and looked him straight in the eyes. "This murderer is using the name Battōsai." Kenshin's eyes widened a bit before blinking a few times. He moved to the side and motioned him inside to talk

further on the situation. A few moments later and the officer was sitting down facing the three residents of the Kamiya Dojo. A moment of silence was passed as Kaoru passed out cups of tea to everyone. The officer began to give the

group all the details he could. Many deaths have been happening as of late. They were found either decapitated or they bled to death from the many wounds on their bodies. A couple of days ago, a woman was brave enough to come

forth and tell the police that her husband was killed by someone with an unusual sword technique and used the name Battōsai. Yahiko gritted his teeth at the information they had received. It seemed that his day was only getting worse.

Now some guy was using the name Battōsai and claiming to be his idol. "That's ridiculous! People around here know about Kenshin once being the Battōsai and know his face. Besides, he's taken an oath never to take a life again." It was

silent as the four sipped their tea and thought things through in their heads. Then Kenshin mouthed his idea. "Perhaps I shall meet with this woman. Try and get information concerning the description of this man. " The officer set down his

almost empty cup. He opened and closed his mouth a couple time, seemingly having trouble with how he was going to say something. Finally after a moment he told them that the widow refused to talk to anyone. The only thing she's said

when questioned was 'I need some time to myself.' Yahiko groaned and fell onto his back mumbling something about not going to get anywhere for a short while. After finishing his tea, the officer excused himself and said that if he learned

anything he would inform them right away. With a slight bow he left the dojo to patrol the area once more.

~o~o~o~o~o~

A hand placed a piece down on a board and then rested it in his lap over his other arm. "Nothing I say will make you stay a bit longer, will it?" Katsu asked as Sannai made her move on the board. She shook her head and motioned for him

to make his move, taking a sip of her tea. Katsu studied the board and then made a move, but Sannai made him regret it. "I win again, Katsu." The journalist sighed and nodded. He placed some money in her hand and then suggested,

with a slight pout, that they should play another game. She laughed a bit and agreed. They played a few games of dice and after losing ten rounds he gave up. They stood up after finishing their tea and Sannai put the cups away then

they headed out to the Akabeko. They were greeted by Tea and Tsubame instantly and were seated at their usual booth. Tsubame served them this time, for Tea was busy with many customers of her own. But of course they didn't mind.

After they ordered their meals, Katsu cleared his throat to get the woman's attention. "I have a parting gift for you, Sannai. It's not much though." He reached into his shirt and pulled out a rolled up piece of paper and handed it to her.

She looked at it, slightly confused before taking it out of his hands. She unrolled the paper, which had weights to make it look more like a scroll, and her eyes widened. "It's something to make sure you won't forget about us." On the scroll

was an oil painting he had finished the night before. It was of her four friends in Tokyo. Yahiko was in the front of the group, wearing his bokken on his back like usual, and holding two fingers out in front of him in a peace sign like manner,

along with a smug like look on his face. To his left behind him was Tsubame, her hands at her chest holding a tray, and smiling. Behind her was Tae, holding a hand to her mouth and looking like she was holding back a giggle, with her

other hand brought up to her chest. To the right of Yahiko was Katsu himself, smirking a bit while juggling a few of his small hand bombs in his left hand. She smiled and held back tears of happiness. "Thank you, Katsu. This will be my

treasure." Tsubame came back with the food just as she was about to fold it up. The young girl's eyes widened in amazement. "That's beautiful!" She said and smiled. "I'm glad you got something, too." The comment made Sannai raise a

single eyebrow in question. Tsubame excused herself quickly after placing the food down and ran into the back of the restaurant. Sannai giggled a bit and after saying "Itadakimasu" with Katsu, she started to eat her meal. They made

small talk until Tsubame came back with something in her hands, holding it close to her chest as if protecting it. "He dropped it off earlier this morning. Tae got something similar as well." She handed her older friend the scroll and she

opened it. Sannai laughed a bit as she looked at the picture. It was her with her sword drawn out a smirk on her face, but a little dark look in her eyes. On the bottom right corner of the painting was a cute picture of Sannai with an arm

wrapped around Tsubame's neck from behind, and her other arm stretch out in front of them making a peace sign. She smiled and touched the painting gently, tracing the sword that was painted. "You even got the sword right." She

noticed as she folded it and handed it back to the girl. Katsu smirked as he chewed on the food in his mouth. After swallowing he took a sip of his drink before nodding at Sannai. "After knowing you for about, what, a month? You'd think

I'd notice what kind of sword you carried." Sannai smiled and reached over the low table and hugged him the best she could. "Thank you. That's sweet of you to think of everyone." When she let go, Katsu blinked before looking away, a

small blush on his cheeks. "Ah, it was nothing really." Tsubame giggled a bit and then left to tend to her other customers.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Sannai stopped walking suddenly and Katsu noticed a moment later. He stopped walking, turning to look back at her. He was about to ask what was wrong when he saw Yahiko jump at her. Sannai easily dodged and smiled when he

rolled around a bit on the ground. "Sorry Yahiko. Perhaps next time." Sannai managed to get out without laughing lightly. The young samurai grumbled and jumped up, pointing his bokken at her. "I'll get you sometime, Sannai!" The

woman giggled and covered her mouth. "If you say so." Then he stood in a fighting stance and the elder woman tilted her head, slightly confused. "Yahiko?" He smirked and told her that if he landed a hit on her she had to stay for at least

another week. She sighed and, knowing that he wouldn't be able to land a blow on her, she accepted. But she was surprised when he came right at her, in public! She dodged the attacks as she predicted his moves as he swung at her.

He was skilled for his age, she gave him that much. She knew he trained under the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu at the dojo he stayed at. So he had some experience. The one sided battle seemed to drag on and soon a crowd started to form. It

was something Sannai did not want. So she used her sword, keeping it sheathed, and swung at him, blocking an attack and hitting him on the side. She made sure not to put much strength into it in order not to hurt the boy. The crowd,

which seemed disappointed, broke up and soon they were paid no mind to. But Yahiko jumped back up and charged at her again. Sannai smiled a bit and kept knocking him back whenever he came at her. He went at it for at least an hour

before becoming tired. Sannai put her sword back on her hip and turned to look at Katsu, who was leaning against the wall of a building they were by. She smiled and then her eyes practically popped out of their sockets when a rock

smacked her right in the head, causing her to fall to the ground. Yahiko punched the air in victory and looked at the girl who was spread out on the ground dizzy. Yahiko and Katsu walked over and looked down at her, and just when her

friends were going to ask if she was alright, her eyes narrowed slightly and she jumped up, swinging her sword and blocking a few kunai from attacking her friends. "Show yourself. I do not appreciate you attacking my friends in order to

get to me." Her voice was annoyed and a bit cold. A moment later a few men and woman came into view, holding weapon ranging from knives to flails. "What is this? The middle ages? What the hell you carrying a flail around for?" Yahiko

questioned, raising a brow at the group, but it was an insult to the ones who carried the weapons. Sannai got into a fighting stance and pushed Yahiko back behind her. "Katsu, take Yahiko and run. Please, I can't protect you from all of

them." She plead when she was him about to argue. After a moment he nodded, grabbing Yahiko around the waist and carried him away as he ran, the boy struggling to get free from his hold. The group smirked and charged at her, but

Sannai threw a smoke bomb down and the attackers stopped, covering their mouths, unsure if it was toxic or not. When the smoke cleared, they saw the woman running away, and she was a few yards away from them. They all charged

after her and Sannai made a fearful expression as she ran. She turned down allies in hopes of losing them, but they were closely following her. Why were they after her? She blinked and slowed down, recognizing the area she had visited

a month ago. She jumped a bit, shocked when she heard the group still after her. "Persistent, aren't they!" She squeaked and jumped over the wall that surrounded the property. She landed on the ground, skidding a bit before spinning

around to see the group jumping or climbing over the wall. She sagged her shoulders and her left eye twitched a bit. She had no choice, she had to get rid of them. Avoiding them without a fight was futile. She straightened her body and

took a stance, her hand close to her sword, ready to draw it. When they came close enough she swung at them, the force itself made the group fly back towards the wall and crash through it. Only a couple stood conscious and she quickly

knocked them out with the butt of her sword. She sighed and sheathed her sword, glad that, that was taken care of. Then a voice caught her attention and she turned towards it, her eyes wide with surprise. "Who the hell are you?"

* * *

S: I swear Kenshin. You're too nice.

K: Heh, heh. Well Sano, I couldn't just ignore her when she was in need of assistance, that I could not.

Y: But that's what usually causes trouble for us!

s: I'm sorry to be a bother to you all.

K: Eh...really Sannai-dono. It's no trouble at all, that it is not!

k: No trouble? My dojo is in need of repair. Again!

s: Next time on Another Battōsai: _The Kamiya Dojo: Repairs And A Place To Stay_. I promise I'll fix everything!


	3. Kamiya Dojo: Repairs And A Place To Stay

Disclaimer: I Do NOT own Rurouni Kenshin, that right belongs to Nobuhiro Watsuki. This story is strictly fan-based. I do, however, own Sannai Erina and her late commander, Shiroji Sasuke.

* * *

**The Kamiya Dojo: Repairs And A Place To Stay**

Sannai put her hands up in attempts to show that she meant no harm as she backed up a couple steps. "I am simply a rurouni. I don't mean to intrude." She turned to leave but she heard rushed footsteps headed towards her. She

turned and dodged the oncoming fist that was aimed at her head. She was now further away from the hole in the wall where she had planned on escaping through. The tall, dark haired man now stood in front of it, preventing her from

doing such a thing. "You're not going anywhere. They say that there have been killings happening as of late. And you're carry a sword. I bet there's a reward for bringing in the killer!" He said, excitement in his eyes. Sannai sighed and

rested her left arm over her sword. "You sound like the officer who assaulted me a month ago. I do not go around killing for pleasure. Now would you be so kind as to let me go?" She smiled, closing her eyes and tilting her head to try to

convince him in letting her leave. The sound of something rubbing against the dirt caught her attention. Without even opening her eyes she knew that he had change into a fighting stance. She sighed and opened her eyes, looking at the

man. "Is there really no way to avoid this? I rather not fight pointless battles." The comment seemed to make the man angry. Her thinking fighting him would be pointless made him enraged. He ran at her and swung his fists at her and

every time she would dodge him. Then her eyes widened when her back hit the wall of the dojo. The man attacking her smirked and swung his fist at her. However, she was able to dodge it using speed that had the man widen his eyes.

He continued his swing though, destroying the wall of the dojo. "The Futae no Kiwami. Impressive." Sannai spoke as she changed her stance into that of an attack. The man turned, a smirk on his face as he cracked his knuckles. "Oh, so

you know of the technique. I'm impressed as well. I didn't think anyone knew of it. Looks like this fight will be interesting." He got into another fighting stance before charging at her. Sannai didn't know what to do. This man was unarmed

and she didn't know hand-to-hand as well as he did. But if she didn't fight it wouldn't end. Sighing, she had to resort to her only option. She drew her sword and swung at him, hitting him on the arm and after hearing a satisfying crack,

she backed away. He held his arm and winced as he moved it. She said something about her having some power behind her attack that it reminded her of Kenshin's attacks. She raised a brow at the name. "Kenshin?" She whispered to

herself quietly. She shook her head to clear the thoughts building in her head. Now was not the time to let her mind wonder. The man popped his arm back into place and came at her again. She gritted her teeth as she blocked or dodged

attack after attack, occasionally throwing in one of her own. She did not want to hurt this man so she made sure she didn't hit him too hard. Though it seemed that no matter what she did he kept getting back up. She sighed and

sheathed her sword, getting ready for another attack. The challenger seemed to have a trick up his sleeve, for he punched the ground with the Futae no Kiwami and the earth below cracked, heading for her until she jumped out of the

way and it ended at the building, causing a wall to crack quite a bit. When she was coming down to land on the ground, he ran at her and swung his fist at her. Thinking quickly, she moved her sword in front of her to block the hit. She

skidded back a bit, stabbing the ground with her sword to stop herself. She stood up and thought about ending the battle. She charged at the man, opened her mouth to yell out her attack, but blinked when she heard a voice yell out.

"Dou Ryu Sen!" A bunch of rock and debris headed towards Sannai and she jumped out of the way. "Stop this senseless fighting this instant!"

~o~o~o~o~o~

Kaoru and Kenshin were on their way back to the dojo after running to the store to buy some more cleaning supplies when the ex-hitokiri sensed something wrong. Handing the purchased goods to Kaoru, he ran ahead and skidded to a

stop in front of the giant hole in the wall. He saw the woman he helped a month ago and Sanosuke fighting. And Sanosuke was pretty beat up. Anger getting the best of him, he sent an attack at the woman before thinking. She dodged it

by back flipping away from the attack and landed gracefully, her sword still drawn with her left hand on her scabbard. "Kenshin...that sword!" Came Kaoru's voice once she caught up with him. "It's a sakabatō, that it is." Kenshin sheathed

his sword and glanced at Sannai's sword, the sun glistened off of it showing that it was in near perfect condition. He looked over at his friend to see that he only had a few bumps and bruises, possibly a broken bone or two, but no cuts of

any kind. "Ah-ha! So that's the kind of sword you've been carrying! " Came Yahiko's voice as he crawled over the broken wall, heading over to Sannai, who was sheathing her sword. Kaoru's hand on his shoulder stopped him from going

any further though. He just shrugged her off and told her that she had nothing to worry about. He jogged over to the swords woman and smirked at Sanosuke. "Seems she beat you pretty easily." The man spit at the ground and turned,

clearly embarrassed that a woman had beaten him. Kenshin only guessed that he would be heading over to Doctor Genzai's to have Megumi check him over. "Yahiko, you know this woman?" Kaoru asked as she cautiously walked over to

them. Her apprentice nodded and pointed at her over his shoulder with his thumb. "This is Sannai." Hearing the name had Kaoru's eyes widen and they were practically sparkling. Instantly she had the woman's hands in her own and

smiled at her. "You're the samurai from before! You were amazing the last time I saw you! Please, tell me what sword style you use. Oh! And how long you've been a swords woman!" Yahiko's eyes twitched and he jump kicked his master

in the head, sending her flying a few feet away. "Jeez Ugly. Leave her alone!" Kaoru was instantly standing in front of the young boy, glaring at him with fire in her eyes. "What was that? Do you want to clean the dojo until it's

spotless?" Yahiko smirked and chuckled, placing his hands behind his head and looking away. He asked her what dojo and Kaoru turned to see that her dojo was in horrible condition. Her mouth dropped and her eyes were wide. She

closed her eyes and clenched her mouth closed, a frown placed upon her lips. She turned to glare at the woman, who was tip-toeing away towards the giant hole in the wall surrounding her property. "And just where do you think you're

going?" She asked in a dark and calm voice. Sannai froze up and slowly turned her head to look at her, a nervous smile on her face. Kaoru walked up to the girl and glared at her. "You will fix up my dojo! No way am I letting you get away

with this!" The elder woman put her hands up in the middle of the second sentence in defense. She glanced at the building and winced when a wall fell apart, the material falling to the ground. She didn't realize she had caused so much

damage. She looked at Kaoru, smiled fearfully at the enraged girl and nodded. "I apologize. It seems that I got carried away. But you see, I no longer have a place to stay for I was planning on leaving tonight." "Oh no you aren't! I hit

you! Therefore you have to stay for another week at the least." Yahiko's argument had Sannai glare playfully at the boy. She explained that it was a cheap attack and did not count. Kenshin decided to step in. He suggested that she stay

at the dojo until the dojo was repaired, and Kaoru happily agreed. Though not only because she had to rebuild the dojo, but because she wanted to know more about her new idol. Feeling bad for the damage she had caused she agreed,

thus making Yahiko jump and raise a fist into the air.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Sannai was in the kitchen chopping up vegetables for the dinner she would be cooking. She told Kaoru that she would rebuild all that she had destroyed as fast as she could in order to leave quickly so that she wouldn't be a burden

anymore. She was given a room and permission to hang a couple pictures. She was going to start working that night, but Kenshin had told her to start in the morning. Sannai looked out the window as she waited for the water to boil. She

blinked when she realized that someone was watching her. She turned to look behind her to see Kenshin watching her, his looking studying her. "Kenshin, is there something I could help you with?" It seemed that he was lost in thought,

for he blinked a couple times before smiling. "I just wanted to say I am grateful for you not seriously hurting my friend, that I am." Sannai turned back around and put the vegetables in the water before chopping up some meat and putting

it in the fire so it was in flames. Kenshin blinked and raced over to help put it out when Sannai waved him off. "It's fine, Kenshin. I do this all the time." She smiled at him before blowing on it to put it out when the outer layer was black.

Kenshin said something about it looking burnt and the newcomer to the dojo giggled a bit before peeling off the outer layer to reveal to cooked meat under it. He chuckled and left her to cook. He was going to help but it seemed that she

had everything under control. Sannai wondered when she should confront the man about knowing exactly who he was and why he, too, bore a sakabatō. "Perhaps after dinner." She decided as she used the cooking knife to quickly cut up

the meat before sliding it off the cutting board into the soup. She stirred it a bit before moving to create something she was sure they hadn't had before. She poured some oil into another pot and set it over a fire. She got out the tofu and

rice and waited till it was time to use them. A few minutes later she put out the fires she was cooking over and poured the soup into four bowls and placing a two fried pouches of tofu on plates. She set the table and placed four cups of

tea on the table. She placed the chop sticks over the bowls before walking into the hall and spoke loud enough so the household could hear her say that dinner was ready. A moment later Yahiko came running into the room and sat down

at his seat. Then Kaoru sat down on the opposite side followed lastly by Kenshin who smiled at her. "Oh, this looks delicious!" Kaoru complimented before waiting for everyone to be seated. At once they said their thanks before taking a

bite of the food. Yahiko took one of the fried pouches into his mouth and brown eyes widened. He looked at Sannai and asked if it was inari maki and the woman shook her head. "It is inarizushi, fried tofu stuffed with rice. Is

it...acceptable? I haven't made it in awhile so it may be a bit...bland." She admitted, rubbing the back of her neck with a nervous smile. Kaoru took a bite of the new food and smiled at her. "It's delicious!" Sannai sighed in relief before

bringing her bowl of soup to her lips and sipping at it. She felt a little out of place as the friends made small talk about what all they had done that day. Every now and then though, the group would try to ease her discomfort by asking her

a few things about her life. Some questions she avoided answering though, and she was grateful that they hadn't pressed the issue. After they all ate she started to collect the dishes to wash but Kaoru beat her to it. Sannai thanked her

and left to find Kenshin to ask him what she wanted, but after searching for a while she failed to find him. She gave up and headed to her room to find the door slightly ajar. She narrowed her eyes a bit and put a hand on her sword as

she slowly opened the door all the way. She relaxed when she saw that it was Kenshin and he was looking at the paintings she had hung up. "This is the work of Katsu, that it is." He said turning his head to smile at her. She only nodded

and silently wondered why he was in her room. She had searched for him, true, but never expected him to be here. She left the door open just in case as she walked further into the room. She told him that for the last month he had

gained his friendship, as well as Yahiko's and the Akabeko girls. The group painting was a parting gift. She laughed lightly saying that Katsu would be pleased to hear that she was staying longer, but would complain about painting the

picture earlier than he had to. Kenshin turned his whole person to face her and asked her about the picture of the late commander, reaching his hand out to touch said painting. Sannai stalled in answering him. She was not about to tell

him why she had that painting. "He was someone I idolize when I was young." She half lied to the man. He nodded, accepting the answer he received and then mentioned that he had sensed she wanted to ask him something at dinner.

The woman smiled a bit,surprised that he had noticed, yet again he was Hitokiri Battōsai. She shifted her weight a bit and closed her eyes. She asked about why he carried a sakabatō. He simply told her that he swore to never kill again

and he used to the sword to protect those around him. Sannai laughed lightly, covering her mouth a bit as she did so. "I never imagined the great Battōsai to never kill again." At her words his eyes narrow in suspicion. She waved him off

and smiled. "It's not hard to recognize you. Red hair and a cross shaped scar on your left cheek. It surprises me that the siblings here accept you after knowing who you are." Kenshin laughed lightly as well. "Yahiko and Kaoru-dono are

not related, that they are not. But they certainly act like they are, that they do." He walked past her and half-turned to face her once he reached the door. He opened his mouth to say something but she shook her head. "I will not call you

Battōsai. You go by Himora Kenshin now. You have left your past behind you, correct?" The man smiled slightly and nodded in thanks before wishing her goodnight and leaving to retire to his own room.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Kaoru groaned as she was awoken from her slumber to the sound of soft pounding. She yawned and sat up to get a better look out the window. Her shoulders sagged as she saw that the sun was just rising. She pushed herself up and

walked towards the source of the noise, prepared to yell at whoever had woke her up so early. She saw Yahiko slouching a bit and Kenshin standing up straight with his hands in his sleeves. She walked between them to see at what they

were looking at and blinked in surprise to see that Sannai was working on fixing the floor in the dojo. The walls were completely torn down and she could see the woman working. Sannai turned to look at them when she heard Kaoru say

her name and smiled. She stood and made her way over to them, wiping her hands clean on a damp rag. "Ah, Ohayo everyone." Kaoru stuttered a bit, returning the greeting. Yahiko had asked in a groggy voice why she was up so early

and his answer was a nervous one. She was used to waking up before sun rise and it had become a hard-to-break habit. She informed them that she had breakfast made and was keeping it warm by having it over a very low fire, checking

on it every now and then of course, and when they were ready she would serve them. They were all baffled, blinking their eyes in surprise. Kenshin was the first the thank her before turning to head to his room and dress for the day.

Yahiko just grumbled and followed suit and Kaoru bowed a bit in thanks then retreated to her room to do that same. It wasn't until they all came back that they noticed what exactly Sannai was wearing. She wore her usual clothing, but

the kimono top was down, hanging over her waist, relieving her bandaged covered chest. When asked she told them with a slight blush that it was to keep her chest from falling out whenever she got into a fight. All three of them nodded

in understanding before heading to the kitchen to help themselves to breakfast. A moment later Kaoru poked her head out and looked at Sannai who was turning to return to her work. "Are you not eating, Sannai?" She asked. Sannai

shook her head with a smile and went back to work.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Laughter was heard throughout the Kamiya dojo yard as two girls ran away from a smiling and laughing Sannai. Sannai was without her sword, having left it leaning against one of the uncompleted walls in the dojo when Dr. Genzai and

his grandchildren, Ayame and Suzume arrived. Kenshin smiled as he sat on the porch and watched as the woman played with the children. Kaoru was training Yahiko in the dojo, part of the reason she wasn't currently working on it. Sannai

tackled the girls, managing to capture Suzume and he was impressed on how she used her body to protect the child from getting any scraps. The laughter increased as the captured girl was tickled and then Ayame jumped on the woman's

back in attempt to save her sister. Sannai pretended to be over powered by the girls when Kaoru come into view, looking down at the woman. "The dojo floor looks amazing Sannai! Is that _all_ new wood?" Sannai nodded and sat up,

Suzume sitting in her lap and Ayame slouched over her shoulder a bit. "I bought the best I could afford. I hope it is to your liking." Kaoru blinked and looked over her shoulder to see Yahiko still doing his strokes before looking back at the

woman. The assistant master guess that it must have been over a thousand yen and a nervous giggle followed. "Something like that." Yahiko came walking towards them and said that he was done, and Kaoru said he could take a break

for a while. The boy sighed in relief and went to get some water from the well. Ayame and Suzume whined when their new friend stood up, and patted her pants down to remove them of any dirt she had gotten on them. The girls held

onto her pant legs and tugged, innocently asking if they could help her. With a smile the swords woman nodded and the girls cheered, racing off to the dojo. She followed them and then squatted down in front of them, holding a finger out

and suggested something. The girls' smiles grew and they nodded eagerly and ran to the pile of wood as Sannai went to her sword. She put it on her hip as she went to the wall she was working on. The girls came back, both holding a

pile of wood together and dropped it on the ground. "Now, remember what I told you." The girls nodded and both picked up a long piece of wood. The residents of the household peeked their heads around to see what the girls could

possibly do to help out in rebuilding the dojo. The siblings counted to three as Sannai shifted her stance and waited, her left hand close to her sword. "Three!" They said together and tossed the piece of wood into the air. Sannai jumped

at it, swung her sword, then landed behind Ayame and Suzume. Everyone watched as the piece of split into reasonable sizes of wood and piled up in front of the girls. The girls cheered and hugged Sannai as she knelled down to their

height level. "That was amazing!" "Amazing!" Suzume mimicked her sister. Kaoru and Yahiko stepped out into view and clapped, clearly amazed at the scene. Sannai smiled bashfully, rubbing the back of her neck. The children looked at

Sannai, holding another piece of wood ready to toss it into the air. Sannai nodded to them and continued to show off to the girls. It wasn't long before Yahiko joined them in tossing the wooden pieces into the air. She was grateful for him

joining in. He was able to toss them higher into the air than the girls. It wasn't long before there was enough wood cut up to finish the wall she was working on, and Yahiko and the girls sat down and enjoyed a cup of water, watching the

woman work.

~o~o~o~o~o~

About 4 hours late, Sannai leaned back so she no longer balanced on her toes. She wiped the sweat from her forehead and a hand holding a cup of water appeared in her line of vision. She turned to see Kenshin smiling at her, holding out

the cup to her. She smiled, closing her eyes and took the drink, thanking him. He told her that he had prepared a few rice balls and if she was hungry she could eat them. Looking at her work, she decided that she could take a break and

stood up. The pair walked to the porch and sat down. It was silent before Kenshin asked a question that had been in his head for a while. Sannai swallowed and took another rice ball and answered him before taking a bite. "About 1500."

She said casually and lavender eyes widened dramatically. "Oro? Sannai-dono, you shouldn't have spent that much! If Kaoru-dono finds out she'll feel obligated to repay you, that she would." Sannai simply smiled at the man next to her

and shook her head. "Really, it was nothing. I destroyed her dojo so I thought it would be best to make sure I made it up to her." Kenshin slouched and blinked at her, amazed that she was not upset in how much money she had spent.

"But 1500 yen, Sannai-dono. That is simply too much, that it is." She waved his opinion aside and they made small talk while Sannai rested. She asked him questions such as what he's been doing since revolution and asked why he had

stopped wondering. She didn't question him about why he was a Rurouni and he was relieved at that. In return, he did not question her for her reason on being a Rurouni. There were enjoying the comfortable silence when a voice was

heard. "Sir Himora. I've come to give you some news." Kenshin sat up straight from leaning against the wooden banister that held the porch roof up. "Konnichiwa officer. What news do you bring?" The officer nodded in greeting and then

noticed the girl who looked to be sleeping. Her eyes were closed and was an arm over her sword that was resting on her shoulder. "It would seem that the Widow I mentioned sometime ago is willing to speak with you." Himora nodded

and Sannai opened her eyes, looking at him questionably. He shook his head in a way to tell her it was nothing to worry about and got up to follow the officer. Sannai blinked and tiled her head towards the retreating forms. Perhaps

Yahiko knew what Kenshin was up to.

* * *

Y: There was another Battōsai fighting for the Ishin Shishi? Kenshin how come you didn't tell us?

K: Oro?

Y: Don't 'Oro' me! How come!

K: I...didn't think it was of any importance, that I did not.

k: What's surprising is that it's a woman!

S: A woman huh? Is she hot? Owe! What was that for Missy?

k: That's rude! Plus she could probably kill you easily.

K: Well one thing's for sure. We better be careful, that we should.

k: Next time on Another Battōsai: _Wanted: The Legendary Lady Battōsai_


	4. Wanted: The Legendary Lady Battōsai

Disclaimer: I Do NOT own Rurouni Kenshin, that right belongs to Nobuhiro Watsuki. This story is strictly fan-based. I do, however, own Sannai Erina and her late commander, Shiroji Sasuke.

* * *

**Wanted: The Legendary Lady Battōsai**

"I wonder why someone would want to pretend they're Battōsai." Sannai wondered out loud as she sat down with Kaoru and Yahiko on the porch. Ayame and Suzume were napping inside, poorly covered up with blankets. Yahiko had

explained the situation to the girls and to say the least they were upset about it. When Yahiko mentioned that Kenshin used to be Battōsai he wasn't surprised that Sannai seemed unaffected by it. However, when Kaoru asked why she

was calm about the 'new' information and Sannai told her why, she started to panic. Thinking that she was after Kenshin. After a whack on the head from Yahiko, and a short fight later, she calmed down and seemed fine with her knowing.

Kaoru was more upset than the other two in the room. about the whole fake Battōsai thing that was happening again. Yahiko was annoyed that it had happened again and Sannai was confused on why anyone would want to pretend to

be him. They came to a conclusion that after they ate a late lunch they would each ask around to see if anyone knew anything about this Battōsai that was committing murders. "Hope you're not cooking, Ugly." Kaoru turned her attention

to the boy and started chasing him away, swinging her wooden sword around trying to hit him. Sannai giggled a bit and retreated to the kitchen to gather some things to make the miso soup outside, since it was nice out. She balanced

everything with one arm as she crouched down to recover Ayame and Suzume. She made her way to the pot and started to cook. Within minutes the young siblings woke up and groggily made their way over to Sannai. "Aunty Sannai.

What are you making?" For once Suzume did not mimic her sister, but merely yawned and rubbed her eyes. Sannai smiled gently and picked the tired girls up. "I was making miso soup. But it seems I should take you home now. Me, Aunty

Kaoru, and Yahiko have to go somewhere." She cradled them in her arms, managing to hold them both, one on each arm, and they snuggled close, quickly falling back asleep. She stood up and looked for either Yahiko or Kaoru. She found

Kaoru and groaned inwardly. "Kaoru. I'm going to take Ayame and Suzume back to Doctor Genzai. You eat without me. I'll get a head start. The miso soups done. Just poor it into bowls and enjoy." She smiled at Kaoru's nod and left,

feeling the mistress of the household follow her and head to the soup.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"Thank you for bringing them back. They seem exhausted. They'll have a good sleep tonight." Sannai smiled and nodded, mentioning that they had been playing almost all day. She started her search by asking him if he knew anything

about the fake Battōsai and he shook his head. The only thing he knew that he had lessened his killing dramatically. She thanked him and left. She started by asking random shoppers in the marketplace. A lot of them had avoided

answering the question, like they were afraid of answering. Some did not know anything about him, only that he had killed about 10 people. That they knew of, of course. Though a couple of people were helpful. She had learned that the

people he left alive were warned not to go to the police. He also wore a cloak to conceal most of what he looked like and two swords on his left hip. The part they noticed the most were the eyes. They were cold and distant, unable to be

read. She thanked the shoppers that had given her the information before moving to ask some shop keepers. She blinked every time a door was slammed in her face or a store owner freaked and closed up shop early. She would try one

more shop before searching for her new friends who were also searching by now. "I-I'm sorry miss. But other than what you probably already know, I know nothing." The man was the owner of a fruit stand. Sannai sighed and hung her

head a bit before asking him that if, hypothetically, she didn't know any of the rumors. The man was silent for a bit before answering her.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"Any luck, Yahiko?" Kaoru asked as she walked to meet the young boy. He shook his head and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Everyone I asked freaked out and avoid me." He admitted and his teacher nodded. "Same here. I did

get a bit of information though. It seems that the people he killed were unarmed and weren't suspecting a thing." "Sounds more like something a ninja would do. But the wounds were made by a samurai sword." Kaoru sighed and looked

around for Sannai. Perhaps she had better luck in getting information about the Battōsai. She saw an elderly man passing by and called out to him. He stopped and looked at her, asking her what he could help her with. She asked him if

he'd heard anything about the Battōsai. He looked at her like she was crazy. "You shouldn't search for the Battōsai! You could be next! Everyone else that did, including police, were killed!" Yahiko walked up the them, catching the last bit

of what the man said. He told them that Kenshin was the only Battōsai and he lived with them. He also mentioned that the old man should know that for he talked to him a few times. The man looked at them and laughed at them like he's

lost it. He then went into a coughing fit and the two panicked but once he started to calm down he waved them away a bit. "Yes, yes. I know that Himora was once a Battōsai. But this Battōsai is not Himora. I know because I have seen

someone being killed. I am lucky I was unnoticed. Either that or I was no threat at all. Whatever the reason I am glad I am alive." He paused in speaking as he purchased some goods and then turned towards Kaoru and Yahiko once

more. "Why do you still call him Battōsai if you know it isn't Kenshin?" Yahiko asked as he reached out to take the food he was offered, but his head was hit with Kaoru's wooden sword. "Owe! What the hell?" "That's not nice Yahiko.

That's his food. We have some at home." Yahiko mumbled something about Kaoru somehow ruining Sannai's soup even though it was done and Kaoru's face turned red with rage and embarrassment. "Well you shouldn't be complaining!

You're living under my roof for free you know!" She said while shaking him harshly. The elder man chuckled at them, mentioning that they acted like siblings. He regretted saying so when they turned towards them and yelled that it was

impossible to be related to the other. Clearing his throat, the man spoke up again. "As I was saying. Himora couldn't possibly be the Battōsai that has been killing. But it _is_ a Battōsai. Himora wasn't the only one during the Bakumatsu." He

took a bite of his sweets before walking away, having the youngsters blinking in confusion after him.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Kenshin walked into a room where a light haired woman sat near a window looking down at the busy marketplace. The officer that had led him to the room informed him that he only had a short time. The rurouni nodded and once the door

was shut he spoke, the woman not even startled even though she seemed to be in a daze. "You must not be from around here. You're hair color gives it away, that it does." He stood next to her and smiled as she nodded. She was

responsive. That was a good thing. "I come from the west. I came here as a tourist and met my..." Her eyes saddened and Kenshin's eyes softened. "Tell me. What did this... Battōsai look like? We're trying to find your husband's

murderer. If you could give me a few details-" "Green eyes and long brown hair. Wore two swords and...and eyes that seemed to see into the very depth of the soul..." she started to shake a bit in fear. Kenshin put a comforting hand on

her shoulder and assured her that she'd have her revenge. Though he needed to know more about the killer. She told him all she could without breaking down. "It had all happened so quickly. We were walking down the street and..."

she paused and looked down at her lap, her hands gripping the fabric of her kimono as if her life depended on it. "He sensed her presence I guess. Because he pushed me aside and told me to hide. I did and...hid in an ally." Her eyes

opened in fear as the scene seemed to replay in her head again. "She...came at him. And he tried to pr-protect himself. But it was as if...as if she had disappeared! Blood splattered everywhere! Covering her clothes...some of it on her

face. She...looked at me...and...and..." She started to cry and Kenshin looked down at the floor in thought as he replayed what she said in her mind. "Forgive me for asking. But you said 'she'?" the woman took a breath to calm down and

nodded. "Y-yes. I recognized her from fourteen years ago. Even though she has grown much since then. I'd recognize those eyes anywhere. And that scar." "Scar?" The girl nodded. "Was it in-" The door opened cutting him off and both

occupants looked to see the officer who let Kenshin in walk in. "I'm afraid time is up, Himora." Kenshin nodded and bowed a bit to the widow before walking past the man. The sound of the chair scraping the wooden flooring caught his

attention and he turned his head to see the woman standing. "Yes, Himora. The scar was in the shape of a lightning bolt." Kenshin nodded his thanks for the information and then left, missing the smirk on the woman's face.

~o~o~o~o~o~

A loud crash was heard then Kaoru yelling Yahiko's name following. Sannai slouched and watched as the wall she had just fixed collapsed once more. She had decided that, for privacy reasons, she should pause on the dojo and fix the

perimeter wall. She was just about done when Yahiko wanted to test its sturdiness and, despite the warning that the cement had not yet dried, he hit it with his bokken with as much force as he could muster. She sighed and looked at the

seemingly-siblings to see Kaoru shaking Yahiko who had many bumps on his head. Sannai stood up and dusted her pants off. She smiled nervously at Kaoru and told her that it was fine. She would go buy more material and have the wall

fixed in no time. Yahiko, who was released from Kaoru's attacks, scratched the back of his neck in shame and offered to assist her in gathering the new materials. Sannai politely refused the money Kaoru offered her in order to pay and

soon her and Yahiko made their way to the marketplace. "Erm...Sorry about that, Sannai." Yahiko apologized as he walked away from the dojo with her. Sannai laughed lightly and said that it was fine. She needed to go shopping for more

materials for the dojo any ways. She would just be buying more than she planned. The information only made Yahiko feel worse. the whole walk there Sannai had a calm look on her face. But Yahiko sensed that something was wrong. As

they walked through the streets both friends noticed the police kept glancing at Sannai. She just smiled and acted as if she hadn't noticed. Yahiko didn't know if she had and was hiding it or if she was simply that off guard. He even saw

Kenshin look at Sannai with suspicion when they were walking around. "Yahiko. You shouldn't space out like that." Sannai scolded as she dropped some wood into his unsuspecting form. The boy yelped and grabbed the wood as best he

could, but ended up standing at an awkward position holding all but one piece of wood with his arms and the last one balancing on his foot. Laughing lightly, his friend helping him out and paid for the wood before heading over to buy

some stones. "Hey, Sannai? How are we supposed to carry all of this?" He asked as he followed her around. Her answer was a simple smile and he rolled his eyes. He then asked if Katsu knew she was still here and she froze. He saw

sweat cover the back of her neck under her ponytail and he laughed. They knew that he'd be upset that he wasn't told. She smiled widely at him and made a U-turn towards Katsu's house. Yahiko groaned and followed her. He would be

carrying the heavy load longer now. "Me and my big mouth." He grumbled to himself.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"Give it back." Sannai blinked at Katsu's demand, tilting her head to the side confused. "The painting. It's a parting gift. You're not parting with us yet." Yahiko glared at the man and went to hit him on the head but he missed when the

attack was dodged. He started after the man but Sannai grabbed the back of his shirt and held the flailing boy back, smiling nervously as she did so. "Now now, Yahiko. I can understand where he's coming from. But Katsu...I have it hung

up on the wall in my temporary room already." The young painter sighed and sipped his tea, giving in and saying that she could keep it. He looked at the pile of supplies and questioned if that was for the repairs and she nodded. It was a

lot and must have cost a bundle. But with the money she won gambling with him and the money she already had with her, he knew she could afford it. He was just curious as to why she was spending so much on the repairs on the old

dojo. She just shrugged when he asked. The visit didn't last long because Sannai wanted to finish the wall before nightfall. So Katsu saw them off and Yahiko and Sannai headed back to the dojo. They both had half of the wood tied on

each of their backs, thanks to Katsu's idea, and both held half of the stones in their arms. Yahiko collapsed when they reached the dojo, panting and complaining about the trip back was worse than Kaoru's training. Sannai laughed and

took the stones to the wall and set them in a pile then went to put the wood on her back down on the dojo floor. She smiled and went over to the tired boy, untied the wood from his back and pushed them aside. Yahiko found himself in

the woman's arms and he was being carried over to the porch. She looked down at him as she placed him sitting next to the wooden post and brushed his hair away from his face. Her expression became pained and she gritted her teeth.

She blinked when she heard Kaoru ask what was wrong. She put on a believable fake smile and shook her head. She told her that her stomach was just upsetting her and she went to get a cup of water. She took a deep breath and felt a

bit better. She walked outside and instantly two young girls latched themselves to her legs. She laughed, her heart feeling much lighter as she walked around with them on her legs. The siblings laughed and held on as she made her way

to the stone wall she was prepared to fix. She kneeled down when she reached the wall and tickled them to make them fall onto their butts. She asked them if they wanted to help and they cheered. So for the next couple of hours,

Sannai, Ayame, and Suzume worked on the wall. The female samurai would put the plaster down and the sisters would take turns placing the stones in their spots. When they could no longer reach, she picked them up so they could place

them down. "Oro? Ayame and Suzume are still here?" Asked Kenshin finally returning from visiting the widow. "Yes, they did go home, but a woman, Megumi, brought them back cause they got pretty busy." The sisters smiled and ran to

Kenshin, calling out to him. "Uncle Ken!" Kenshin smiled at the girls and crouched down to their level. "Ah, Ayame, Suzume. What have you been doing today?" Ayame smiled and hugged Kenshin's arm and looked up at him. "We've been

helping Aunty Sannai!" "We're helping." Mimicked Suzume. Kenshin smiled and looked at the other rurouni. "I'm going to start the laundry, that I am. Is there anything-" Sannai waved at him causing him to stop and tilt his head to the

side in confusion. "Nonsense. I've already collected all the laundry and have everything prepared for dinner. All I've got to do is cook it when the laundry is done. I'm not going to be able to finish this wall today." She told him as she stood

up, dusting her hands off on her pants. She turned towards him and pointed a finger at him. "Kaoru and Yahiko have already taken a bath. Would you take Ayame and Suzume home? And when you get back a bath will be ready for you.

But you have to keep your clothes out of the actual room so I can wash them. I'll have Yahiko place your night clothes in the room until I finish cleaning them." Kenshin blinked and was about to argue with her, but she picked up the girls

and placed them in his arms and ushered him out of the gate. "Goodbye Ayame and Suzume!"

~o~o~o~o~o~

Just like she had said, a bath was indeed prepared for him when he returned from taking the children home. His clothes were folded up and ready to be worn the next day. They were in his room by his rolled up futon. Everyone, except

Sannai, was eating dinner, which Sannai made. She claimed she wasn't hungry and cleaned Kenshin's sword. She was just about done actually. She wiped it down with a rag to remove any debris from the cleaning material she used and

then held it up to inspect it. She turned it to check all angles of the weapon before she put it back in its scabbard. At that moment Kenshin came out and smiled at her. "Really, Sannai-dono, you work too much, that you do." Sannai smiled

back at the rurouni and shook her head. She just felt like she was a burden to everyone for being there. Yahiko came in to the conversation to argue. To him and Kaoru, probably Kenshin as well, she was taking the load of the daily work

from their shoulders. However, to the youngest of the four, he felt that just repairing the dojo would be good enough. But again the female rurouni argued that she was eating their food and they provided her with shelter, thus she felt

responsible for doing housework as well. The apprentice of the Kamiya Kasshin sighed in defeat then retired to his room for the night. Kaoru did the same and for a moment it seemed as if Kenshin was going to question something to the

swordswoman in front of him, but Sannai stood and handed him his sword, gripping hers, still in its sheath, with her left. She bowed slightly to him and retreated to her room. Kenshin looked at his sword and pulled it out from the scabbard

a bit to inspect the blade and smiled a bit as he slid it back in the case. It would seem that the cleaning and sharpening the woman did to his sword was satisfactory. He let out a small yawn as he walked towards his room to sleep.

~o~o~o~o~o~

He would confront her today. He would defeat her and demand the answer from her. The door to Sannai's room opened but her pursuer did not continue into the room. Instead, hurried footsteps ran down the hall. Moments later a second

pair of footsteps followed back towards the female rurouni's room. One advanced into the room, which seemed to not have been touched all night. "Kenshin...you don't think that she..." Yahiko asked his idol with sadness in his voice.

Kenshin did not answer for he did not know himself. Instead, he turned and left the room. Maybe she woke up earlier than normal. They checked the bath house and saw that it was unused since the previous night. Yahiko panicked as he

turned and called out for Kaoru, but he was instantly hushed when a bowl smacked him in the face. "Quiet!" She said in a hushed yell. "You'll wake her!" She received confused looks from the males and she groaned, pointing to the wall

that surrounded her property. "I woke up late last night...for reasons. And saw that she was up. I asked her why and she said she couldn't sleep. She's been like that like that since I woke up." Her friends looked to where Kaoru pointed

and saw Sannai, sitting with her legs crossed, her sword leaning against her shoulder, and leaning against the completed wall. And she had paint on her clothes and face as well. "She's been working so hard that I decided not to wake

her to even suggest she retire to her room." Kaoru admitted before returning to the kitchen. Yahiko said a smart statement about Kaoru having to cook and Sannai would wake to find them all dead. Kaoru's short-temper with the boy

made her lose her calm and she started chasing after him scolding him on how rude it was to be insulting someone who was letting him eat and stay for fee. Kenshin smiled as he watched the teens run around before heading over to the

sleeping rurouni. He crouched down and placed a hand on the sword to move it so he could pick her up, but the hand holding the weapon tightened and the other grabbed his wrist. He looked at her face and could tell by the expression

and breathing that she was still asleep. Even in her sleep she had her guard up. He let go of her sword and she let go of his wrist. She very carefully moved to pick her up and was surprised that she did not attack her when he did this. He

stood up and carried her to her room so she'd be more comfortable.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Yahiko fell onto his back, failing at blocking an attack from Kaoru properly. He was scolded and they went at it again and again until he got it right. Kenshin sat down near the half completed wall of the dojo and watched the duo train. He

smiled and closed his eye before looking down at the wood work of the dojo floor. He ran his hand over it and was still amazed at how smooth and well put together the flooring was. "I see the wall is fixed up. She did a decent job." Said

Sanosuke as he walked into view. Kenshin greeted him and at his visit Kaoru told Yahiko to take a break. "What do you mean she did a _decent_ job? It looks amazing!" Kaoru said defending Sannai's work. Sannai appeared and they all

greeted her when she said good-morning. Then when she asked Kaoru if there was any breakfast left Yahiko laughed, saying that she might as well wait till Kenshin made dinner. "Oh, I'm sure Kaoru's cooking is fine." She said making the

teacher smile and saving Yahiko from another beating. Without a second thought both girls made their way into the kitchen to get Sannai something to eat. "So Kenshin." Sanosuke said getting the ex-hitokiri's attention. He asked him

what he learned about the one framing him and Kenshin shook his head, telling him that it was a woman that had been killing. He told his young friend all the info he got and how he got it before Sanosuke spoke up. "What do you think?"

He looked at the red-head and smirked a bit. Kenshin sighed and shook his head. "No one else fits the description." Sanosuke's smirk grew a bit and looked over at the girls and Yahiko. "We just need proof, right?" He asked, a wicked grin

appearing on his face.

* * *

K: Green eyes, brown hair, carries a sword in broad daylight. The only thing that's missing is the scar, that it is.

S: You think it's more than just a coincidence?

K: Perhaps. But we have no proof.

S: Well then, let's find proof!

K: Are you sure what you're doing is...safe? Much less legal?

S: It'll be fine. I'll get the proof you need to see whether she's Lady Battōsai or not. Next time on Another Battōsai: _Suspicions: All The Clues Point To Her_


	5. Suspicions: All the Clues Point to Her

Disclaimer: I Do NOT own Rurouni Kenshin, that right belongs to Nobuhiro Watsuki. This story is strictly fan-based. I do, however, own Sannai Erina and her late commander, Shiroji Sasuke.

* * *

**Suspicions: All the clues Point to Her**

Another fish came flying at her and she moved to the side to dodge, looking back at the sales cart to see Sano tossing another fish past him. His excuse? He didn't like them. She sighed and got her money

pouch out. Even though he didn't like them, they would have to pay for the ruined food. Sannai was asked by Kaoru if she could run to the market to gather some fresh food for dinner. She was weary at first,

saying that she didn't feel comfortable for the police were still suspecting her of the crimes she hadn't committed. So Kenshin offered to join her, but Sano put the male rurouni in a headlock and smiled, saying

how he'd take her. She tried to say she would be fine going alone; she would just have to be careful. She hated being a burden. But he was persistent. They were having sushi that night. It was Kenshin's

turn to cook dinner. Over the past month and a half, they had alternated when someone would make dinner that day. It was usually Kenshin, Kaoru, Sannai and repeated, unless Kaoru had training with a

neighboring dojo. Finally, the fighter-for-hire found a nice large fish he had approved of and once _all_ the fish was paid for, they continued shopping. They still had to get more rice, eel, shrimp, seaweed,

wasabi, avocados, and some spicy sauce. She then thought, as she was following Sano around the market as he proceeded to toss food he 'didn't like', conveniently at her, if she should get something to

make for dessert. Or perhaps buy something? But she was already spending so much on ruined food and the large portions Sano 'liked'. She sighed and looked at the remaining money she had in her pouch.

If Sano kept this up, she would be so low she would have to do some side jobs to earn some more to help pay for the 'renovations' of the dojo. Perhaps that wouldn't be so bad. Only thing is that it would

postpone her departure from the Kamiya household and Tokyo. Yahiko would like that. She chuckled, catching the fighter's attention, and when asked what was so funny, she waved a hand and shook her

head. "I was just thinking that's all." "Oh yea? About something funny? Cause if it's about me I'll take you on here, right now." He said, making a fist and smirking at her.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Throwing fish at her to try and catch her off guard failed. Thinking that she was comfortable enough around him that it would ruin her clothes and she would have to change. Then he'd pretend to be a pervert

and peek on her. Though it would probably leave him to be beat, he would see if she did have the scar that the murder had. But, try as he might, she was still on guard and dodging every item of food he

threw at her. Perhaps he needed to think of a new strategy. Then he heard her laugh. An idea came to him and he held back a smirk. He looked at her and had to surprise the proud smile of his new plan.

"What's so funny, Sannai?" He asked, and she waved him off saying she was just thinking. "Oh yea? About something funny? Cause if it's about me I'll take you on here, right now." He said, making a fist and

smirking at her. Sannai blinked and backed away, putting her hands in the air and shaking her head with a nervous smile on her lips. She reminded him that she avoided violence as much as possible and he

barked out a laugh. "Well if you're friends with all of us, it'll be damned near impossible to avoid trouble. It seems to be attracted to our group of friends. This town, even." He quickly regretted his words when

he saw her eyes dull. What had she thought about just now? Regret for being their friends? Regret being there because of the 'trouble' they seem to always get into? "Ah man." Sanosuke said, throwing his

head back and groaning. "Look, we don't…really attract trouble. The police just…have a habit of asking us for help with what they're too afraid of. All the police are weaklings. I could take them all on and not

have a scratch on me!" He said proudly, pointing his thumb at himself with an overconfident smirk. His attempt to cheer her up worked for a smile and a small laugh escaped her lips. "Now, how about we get

this shopping done so we can head back to the dojo, hm?" Sanosuke asked, putting his hands on his hips and leaning towards her a bit. Sannai smiled and nodded and Sanosuke figured that he had cheered

her up. He turned with a big smile on his face as he led the way. But making her happy again didn't mean he was going to give up and try to see if she bore the scar. They didn't have much left to buy so he

would have to think quickly or continue his actions at the dojo. But even there he only had till nightfall before he left for the day and returned to his place for the night. He smirked to himself as he thought of

all the other ways he could try and reveal her arms to see if she had the scar they needed to identify her as the Battōsai.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Collapsing onto the dojo steps, Sanosuke panted in exhaustion as he recapped the recent events that had occurred. Throwing fish at her to get her to change failed. 'Accidentally' knocking a beam onto her

so she'd injure her arm and needed it treated failed, she used her sword to cut the wood before it hit her. Spilling noodles on her failed, he had missed and got it on her pants where she cleaned herself up.

Then there was an incident that he had nothing to do with where a thief had tried to use her as a hostage. The fool he was, but he had to give him props for trying. Then on the way home he 'tripped' and

tried to save himself from falling into the river by grabbing a hold of her sleeve but she fell with him and instead of ringing out their clothes, she said that she would change and hang her wet clothes when

they returned to the dojo, since they were so close anyways. Damn woman was hard to catch off guard. Just like Kenshin. He rolled onto his back and looked up at the blue sky. He heard the door to Sannai's

room open then close as she entered. He could be a pervert and peek in on her changing to see if she had the scar. But would probably be caught by one of the residence of the home and be scolded. He sat

up, hanging his head in defeat. Then a crash was heard and he lifted his head to see a woman enter through the entrance to the Kamiya household. She had brown hair, green eyes, and a sleeveless

toga-like shirt on. His eyes widened when he saw a scar on her upper arm. The female Battōsai! Evidently, everyone heard the commotion and walked out into the court yard to see the intruder, minus

Sannai, who was still changing out of her wet clothes. Kenshin was the first to speak, his eyes having that dangerous glow to them, but not the glow that signaled that Battōsai was emerging. "Who are you

and why have you come to our home?" He asked sternly not taking his eyes from her. The women smirked and unsheathed his sword, pointing it at Kenshin. "I have come to slay you, Hitokiri Battōsai. For

there can only be one Battōsai in this world, and that one should be the strongest. You have fallen and become weak by becoming a rurouni. An easy win for me, Lady Battōsai!" She said, now charging at the

male rurouni with impressive speed. Kenshin easily quick stepped out of the way, appearing behind her, his sakabatō still in its sheath. "It is true that I have put my past behind me and that I have become a

rurouni, that it is. And due to my becoming as such may mean I have become weaker because I no longer fight to kill. However, I do not intend on fighting you, that I do not. Leave this place and no harm will

become of you." He said, but it was a futile attempt. She had come for blood. "Can't you see?" Kaoru spoke up, her hands to her chest and her eyes filled with worry. "Kenshin is no longer Battōsai! That

means you _are_ the only one in this world!" She was right, too. But Lady Battōsai would not see it as such. "Lies! I have heard that he still becomes Battōsai in dire situations! This is unacceptable!" She quick

stepped and appeared behind him, causing the rurouni's eyes to widen and quickly unsheathe his sword to protect himself.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Sannai sighed in relief when she tied the knot on her sash and placed her sword back on her hip. She was glad to be out of those wet clothes. She heard the commotion outside but knew that she didn't have

to rush to get out there. Kenshin would be able to handle whatever trouble had arrived. However, this meant she would have to repair the entrance doors into the Kamiya estate. Her shoulders sagged at

the thought, but at least they seemed to enjoy her staying there. However, Sano had been acting weird the past week. Either that or he normally acted that way and she was just now starting to see it. She

put it to the back of her mind as she headed out of her room and down the hall to see what had become of the intruder. She stood half behind the wall, watching the scene unfold. There was a girl laying

unconscious on the ground and Kenshin kneeling over her. He touched her arm and then rubbed his fingers together before telling Yahiko something. The boy then nodded and ran into the home to retrieve

what she guessed was something Kenshin had asked for. Sannai looked around and could only spot Kaoru. Sano was probably retrieving an officer to come and get the woman. Yahiko came back moments

later and handed Kenshin a cup of water. He said something to the boy, most likely thanks. He then wet his fingers and touched her arm, where the scar was, and it smeared. He wet it again and it came off.

Sannai decided now to reveal herself. She walked towards the fallen woman and Kenshin, and the ex-hitokiri turned to look at her. "She is a fake, that she is. The scar is only paint. She was skilled, but

nowhere near as skilled as the actual Lady Battōsai, that she wasn't." He said, standing up then there was a bang and Sannai's eyes widened as she felt something pierce her right shoulder and cause her to

stumble and almost fall, but she caught herself. She gripped her shoulder and gritted her teeth in pain, looking up to see Kenshin standing in front of her with his sword drawn. "You are the women I talked to

a few weeks ago." He spoke to the attacker. Sannai looked at the woman and there was something familiar about her. Yet she could not place it. The woman glared, right past Kenshin and straight at her.

"You…" Tears were falling from the woman's face as she stepped closer. "You will pay…Lady Battōsai! I tried to take you out, by hiring the best lady assassin around. To frame you…but she got cocky and

tried to take on Hitokiri Battōsai. She was a fool. But I will destroy you myself if I cannot get you behind bars like you should be!" She took aim again but when she fired she missed, hitting the dojo instead. If

the building could feel she would be sorry for it. It had gone through a lot of abuse the past few weeks. Sannai walked around Kenshin, despite his warning. "I am not Lady Battōsai, madam. She has been

dead for many years now." She explained, but the woman took aim again and called her a liar. "You have her eyes! The same…empty and lonely eyes as before…" She shot again, hitting her in the same

shoulder only an inch or so away from the first bullet wound. She heard four voices call out her surname, Sano just having gotten back with the cops to see the second shot. Police took aim and told her to

drop her weapon, and the woman, not wanting to lose her life, dropped the gun and glared at Sannai in a way that could kill. "You will pay…" Sannai smiled slightly, her vision getting blurry from the loss of

blood. "Lady Battōsai is no longer with us. I watched her…leave this world myself. My resemblance…." She never got to finish her sentence for she fell back, still fighting consciousness but barely able to stay

awake. "Sanosuke! Get me a wet cloth! Hurry!" She heard Kenshin yell out, being the first one there to support her head. He had removed his outer haori, using it as a pillow to support her head better.

"Sa…no…suke?" She managed to get out, and the teen arrived with the cloth that Kenshin pressed against the wound. "Yahiko! Get Megumi-dono!" He ordered again, desperate to get her some help. She

called out Sanosuke's name again, looking at him, slightly confused. But then she started hallucinating. She smiled as she saw her elder brother's face appear, smiling down at her and calling her a squirt. Her

eyes started to close, and she saw her brother's face turn back into the teenage Sanosuke's. "Onii…san…" She said, before the world went black.

~o~o~o~o~o~

There was blood everywhere. All over the ground, the trees, even the once clear water had blood in it. There were voices, coming closer and closer. Fear coursed through her veins as she saw the samurai.

Then in a flash they were on the ground, bleeding from the few wounds they received. She looked up to see a kind smile from a figure, hidden in a shadow. Who was he? Another flash of lightning and there

were injured women and children around her. All weeping from loss and fear, some had blood on their hands while some wore torn and battered clothing. She walked through them all to the building

entrance, to see what had become of the world beyond the building walls. However, instead of seeing a village like she had expected, there were trees, a forest? She turned to find the building gone,

replaced with samurai with blood on their swords and anger in their eyes. The sound of panting caught her attention, but no one was near her. She turned to see a man, surrounded by dozens of soldiers.

Her eyes widened in realization. "Shiroji-sama!" She called out, her late commander being the only one she gave such a title to. But her voice fell on deaf ears. She ran forward, but it seemed that everything

was in slow motion. Another flash of lightning and she skidded to a stop to a different scene. She was on a small bridge that went across a large pond. Her eyes widened. She closed her eyes tightly and

shook her head. "No…NO! Okaa-san! Otou-san!" She cried out, her eyes watering at the sight of them trying to fight off enemy soldiers, but they were slain to bleed to death from their fatal wounds. She

heard metal sliding against metal and turned to see her older brother standing in front of a young woman. His arm was firm as he glared at someone, but no one was there. Then in another flash, he was

kneeling on the ground, panting. He slowly got up, and in another flash, she was closer to him, his eyes now dull and empty of life. "ONII-SAN!" She cried out, tears threatening to fall. The sound of thunder

and four flashes of lightning, the first her brother laid alone in a field. The second, her father, thirdly her mother, and finally the fourth were their graves, lined up next to one another. Tears fell from her face

freely now as she knelled before her family's graves. Then there suddenly was fire surrounding her. She stood up quickly, turning around to find her commander, eyes wide and a sword through his throat.

"Shiroji-sama!" She yelled but no sound came from her. His eyes saddened looking at her, but a smile still came to his lips. He said something to her, but again there was no sound. Then he closed his eyes as

an enemy soldier beheaded him. Voices now became audible. Telling her how she was at fault for her family's death. How her commander died because she couldn't protect them. Their blood would forever

stain her hands. She leaned forward, still kneeling from the scene of her family's graves and bowed her head, tears now freely falling. First, her parents, then her brother, and finally the man she thought of as

a second father. All died before her. And there was nothing she could do. The voices still spoke to her, taunting her, appearing in kanji as they were spoken. She screamed out, covering her ears. But her

hands were wet and warm. She pulled them away to see them covered in blood. She fell onto her backside, her clothes also covered in blood. Four shadows appeared and she looked up to see the

half-decayed corpses of her family and Shiroji-sama, whom was holding his head at his side by his hair. They asked her why she let them die. Why she didn't do anything. And she started to cry once more,

squeezing her eyes shut, saying she didn't mean to. How it wasn't her fault. Then she felt hands on her, she opened her eyes to see the corpses attacking her, shaking her and calling out to her. "You ruined

the Sannai name." "Ruined…Sannai name." "Sannai!" "Sannai!" And her eyes shot open. No longer green but a bright yellow.

* * *

S: It's just like the time with Saitou…

k: Somebody stop them!

S: And how do you suppose we do that?

k: I…I don't know…

s: I've always wanted to fight the best of the Inshin Shishi. Now I get the privilege of killing you, Hitokiri Battōsai.

B: You shouldn't flatter yourself. I will be bringing death to you.

s: I'll show you to underestimate me. Inuyamo Mitsu Ryu! Ika Inuryu Zen!

S: Next time…on Another Battōsai: _Back in the Bakumatsu: A Battle Between Battōsai_

k: Kenshin!


	6. Back in the Bakumatsu

Disclaimer: I Do NOT own Rurouni Kenshin, that right belongs to Nobuhiro Watsuki. This story is strictly fan-based. I do, however, own Sannai Erina, her late commander, Shiroji Sasuke, and Sannai Erina's parents and older brother**.**

* * *

**Back in the Bakumatsu: A Battle Between Battōsai**

Kenshin awoke to the sound of Sannai yelling and went to check on her to see if she was alright. She was screaming in her sleep, crying out names of people

he supposed she knew. No tears fell from her eyes though, but based on the expressions on her face, he knew she was having a nightmare. He tried to wake

her by gently shaking her shoulder, calling out to her to save her from the dream. She needed her rest from the injury she sustained a couple days ago, but he

didn't want to see her suffer like she was. However, when she opened her eyes, his own widened and he moved quickly, unsheathing his sword to protect

himself but the force she used to attack him was enough to throw him through the thin paper doors of her bedroom. He pushed himself up and looked up to

see Sannai standing there, sword drawn and looking down at him with cold, dangerous eyes. Kenshin stood up with the help of his sword and sheathed it,

looking at her with slightly surprised eyes. He was right to be weary of her in the beginning, but after being under the same roof as her for the past couple of

months or so, his caution had disappeared. But now it was back in full force, and the need to protect his friends surfaced. "I do not want to fight you, Sannai."

She ignored him, stepping off the porch, her eyes never leaving his.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Footsteps were heard coming from behind Erina and she looked with only her eyes to see Yahiko and Kaoru appear. A moment later Sanosuke came from the

other direction. It was obvious they had come to see what all the commotion was. She turned towards Sanosuke and ran at him, her sword aimed for the kill.

Luckily Kenshin was close enough to intervene, pushing her back with his own sword and standing protectively in front of the ex-fighter for hire. "Jeez…what's

with Sannai?" He asked Kenshin after gulping from the near death experience. "That is not Sannai, but Lady Battōsai, that it is." Kenshin informed his young

friend. "So…she's the one the police have been looking for?" "No," Kenshin answered before sheathing his sword when he saw that Erina wasn't going to

attack at the moment. "The woman they wanted was the one that attacked earlier today. They arrested her and the widow that shot Sannai." He said, not

once looking away from Erina. She was known to be quick to attack with amazing speed, speed that challenged even Hitokiri Battōsai's. "Come on

Sannai…knock it off…" Came Yahiko's voice but it was ignored as Erina charged at Kenshin, swinging at him causing him to once again unsheathe his sword and

block the attack, unable to dodge for fear his friend may be attacked by mistake. She continued to attack him, repeatedly swinging her sword at him and he

was trying hard not to fight back. Even if she was the Lady Battōsai, it didn't matter, she was still his friend, and he would not harm her. Though he doubted he

could in the Rurouni state he was in now, but he would try.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Erina paused in fighting and sheathed her sword but never removed her hand from the handle. She simply shifted her stance and Kenshin recognized that it

was a defensive stance. Surely she knew that he wouldn't attack her. Though he didn't have to wonder why for very long for she charged at him, pulling the

blade out. Kenshin blocked it and skidded back some but then ended up flying across the court yard. She had used her scabbard to attack him, it was an

offensive version of his Sou Ryu Sen. He pushed himself up but had to be quick once more to block another of her attacks. He gritted his teeth as he held her

back, and ended up kicking her to get free. Dodging the attacks was getting more and more difficult. She was reading his movements, and predicting what he'd

do next. Something one had to learn when being a Battōsai. "Pathetic." Erina spoke for the first time since he had awakened her from her nightmares. "You are

nothing like the Battōsai I have heard so much about." She practically spat at him. "I have no connection with that name anymore." Kenshin defended himself,

slowly standing up and keeping his sword out to protect himself from an attack that would clearly be coming soon. "A Battōsai is a Battōsai until the day he

dies."

~o~o~o~o~o~

Kenshin's eyes widened as she spoke the same words Jin-e spoke when he had battled him to save Kaoru's life a couple years ago. He opened his mouth to

speak, but ended up being thrown across the court yard once more. He didn't even have a chance to block or dodge for she had distracted him slightly by

getting him to talk and used god-like speed to catch him off guard, smart move on her part. He pushed himself up once more and managed to block her next

attack, though he retaliated this time to try and catch Erina unexpectedly. She was pushed back and a small smirk played on her lips followed by a small

chuckled. Kenshin held his sword up and glared, swinging at her when she came to attack him again. Perhaps if he kept swinging back at her, he could keep

her far enough away so that he wouldn't be harmed and it may even give him a chance to think of a way to bring her back to the gentle Rurouni they had met a

couple months ago. "Come on, Sannai!" Sanosuke's voice was heard from the porch of the dojo. "Come back to us!" He tried to reason with her, "I'm sorry I

tried to frame you!" The teen both admitted and apologized. His efforts were in vain though. Finally Kenshin came up with an idea. He went into an offensive

stance and just hoped it would work. He ran at Erina, swinging his sword but she easily blocked it, pushing him back and retaliated. The female Rurouni-turned-

Battōsai swung at the ground, calling out an attack. Kenshin barely had enough time to block the Dou Ryu Sen before she appeared next to him, swinging her

sword and hitting him across the chest as she ran past him. She didn't stop her attack, however, for she adjusted her hands and pushed the Rurouni down

towards the ground. She continued to apply pressure, glaring at him as he held back her sword from his neck with his scabbard. It began to crack and that's

when he used his feet to push her off of him.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Kaoru yelled out Kenshin's name and moved to interfere, but Sanosuke stopped her by extending an arm out in front of her. "Not a good idea, Missy." He said,

looking down at her. "Kenshin can handle his own, you'd only be a distraction. He'd have to protect both himself and you." Kaoru knew he was right, but she

couldn't help it. Sannai was now Lady Battōsai and from her point of view, Kenshin was having some trouble. "Relax. Kenshin's probably got a plan." He tried to

comfort her. They both turned back to the fight and knew why Kenshin wasn't fighting back. Erina was their friend, it was just a shame that they had to find out

she was the lady Battōsai this way. Perhaps if they had found out the way Kaoru did with Kenshin, this wouldn't be happening. Though Erina and Kenshin were

not the same person, therefore the way their history was revealed would also surely be different. Another crash and the bathhouse would need repaired. A

few moments later the wooden door to the estate would need replaced. Though not all the damages were done by Kenshin's body, Kenshin was now fighting

back. So the estate doors were from Erina crashing into them. They continued at it for a few minutes, Sannai swinging and Kenshin either blocking or dodging

then attacking her with his own sword and she would block or dodge. Then Erina smirked and Kenshin's eyes widened as he felt himself being thrown towards

the dojo, landing in between his friends and through the porch onto the ground underneath. Wood fell on him and, despite Sano's warning, Kaoru went to see

if he was alright. Her eyes widened and she seemed to be frozen with fear. Sano asked what was wrong, but before Kaoru could answer, the wood covering

their male friend moved and was pushed off of him. Sanosuke's eyes widened as he watched Kenshin pull himself up.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Kenshin stood up and walked past a traumatized Kaoru. He stood in front of Erina, left arm resting over his sword and golden eyes looking at her with his

famous death-glare. Before anything was said, Erina was running at Kenshin, unsheathing her sword. As soon as she got close enough, she swung at him but

at the last second she twisted around him using the quick-step and continued her swing, aiming at the back of his neck. However, when Kenshin

counterattacked, his sword went through her, an after image! His eyes searched for her before he held up his sword stopping her attack from hitting him

across the face. He pushed back and swung at her, but she flipped and landed on her feet, skidding a little as she changed her stance. Kenshin ran at her,

twisting around when he was close enough and as Erina twisted her body and swung her sword to counter-attack, Kenshin ducked and moved to the side,

twisting his body upwards and slashed Erina up her side. She flew into the air and landed on the firepit, putting out the flames with both her body and the dirt

that followed her. Once Erina stood up and tore off her burned outter uwagi, revealing the second one, only thing was the second one was more of an

off-white instead of pure white. Both Battōsai charged at each other, Erina swinging at him only to have him block it. At her second swing in attempt to hit him,

he use the Ryu Kan Sen. He blocked her sword, pushed her back and when she continuing her swing, he turned around and slashed at her back. Erina cried

out, stumbling forward from the force of his attack. Kenshin then backed away as she sloppily swung at him to get him to back a way a bit. "What's the matter,

Erina? I thought you would put up more of a challenge during your last moments alive." He said, not hearing the gasp from the assistant master of the dojo

who was sitting on the porch. Erina smirked and rolled her shoulders. "I'm just warming up, _Kenshin._" She returned before disappearing from view. Kenshin's

eyes then became busy, searching around for her. Finally he located her, though he had to move quickly when he turned around and jumped back just in time

to miss being struck by both her sword and scabbard. Though they didn't rest long; they both ran at each other, jumping at one another and swinging their

swords in the air repeatedly with great speed. Once they landed, Erina looked at her right arm just in time to see the sleeve of her under uwagi tear and blood

to spray out slightly. The same thing happened to Kenshin, ony the male Rurouni-turned-Battōsai had been hit on his left shoulder. Erina turned her head and

bit where the her sleeve had ripped using her left hand to tear the sleeve off. She threw it to the side before running at him again.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Sparks flew when the Battōsai's swords collided against each other. They both tried to push the other back, but ended up jumping away from each other. They

continued running at one an other, swinging and either dodging or blocking the attacks. With every block more sparks would fly from the blades at the sheer

force and speed put behind the attack. Of course, from time to time, one Battōsai would successfully land a blow each other and a new wound would appear.

Even though they both used sakabatōs, the weapons still some damage, just not as bad as normal katanas. They were simply charging and swinging at each

other, not using any special techniques. "Maybe…they'll tire each other out?" Koaru said hopefully, but they all knew that they could go on for hours like this.

They had already been fighting for almost an hour. No matter how many times Kaoru called out to Kenshin it wasn't enough to bring him back. The same went

for Erina everytime Yahiko her yelled for her. Sanosuke wanted to go and get help, maybe Saito would be strong enough to stop them. Though he didn't want

to leave the missy and brat unprotected incase they were caught in the crossfire. The two Battōsai would never forgive themselves when they returned to their

Rurouni selves and had hurt one of them. If they ever did, that is. That was what Sano was afraid of; their friends never reverting back to the Rurouni they

knew and loved. Another crash was heard, breaking the ex-fighter for hire from his thoughts. He looked up from the spot on the ground he was staring at to

see Kenshin pushing wood from the work-in-progess dojo wall. Kenshin glared at Erina as she twirled her sword. The male Battōsai got up and ran at the

female Battōsai, yelling out a technique. "Hiten Mitsurugi Ryū, Ryu Kan Sen Tsumuji!" Erin's gaze darkened as she chuckled, charging at Kenshin and shouting

out a technique. "Meiyo Shūtingusutā Ryū, Fenikkusu Buyō no Tenmetsu!" Sanosuke merely blinked and Erina was in front of Kenshin, swinging so fast that it

had defeated Kenshin's attack. When she was close enough, she spun so she moved around Kenshin and hit his back, but the attack didn't stop there. She

jumped in the air and did a summersault over him, hitting him in the shoulder causing him to lean to the left. After Erina landed, she spun around continuously,

holding out her blade and hitting Kenshin on his chest, both arms, stomach, and both legs. When she couldn't go any lower towards the ground, she was

facing him and jumping up, hitting him the chin causing him to take a step back as he tilted his head up. As Erina descended towards the ground, she dived at

him, hitting his right shoulder. When he feet touched the ground, she jumped back as Kenshin sloppily swung, wanting to get her away. He then spit out some

blood from, what Sano guessed that he bit his tongue from the blow to his chin.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"Hiten Mitsurugi Ryū, Ryu Sou Sen!"Kenshin hollered as he charged at Erina. He started to randomly slash at her in rapid succession simaliar to what she had

done. Only he didn't 'dance' around her. Erina managed to block the first few swings, but as he continued he put more speed into his attack, causing her to

miss blocking one strike and that was her downfall. She was unable to block anymore because with each strike she was hit and pushed back. Kenshin put all

his strength into one final swing, causing her to fly back into the perimeter wall. All of Erina's hard work was once again destroyed. "Tsuchi Fenikkusu

Sutoraiki!" A bunch of rock, stone, and dirt came flying at Kenshin, causing him to swing as fast as he could to block the debris from hitting him. Though he

didn't have time to dodge her blade when she appeared right behind the debris and hit him right across the chest, sending him crashing back into the dojo

stairs. Again, despite Sanosuke's warning, Kaoru ran over to see if he was alright. A hand shot out and grabbed the assistant master's shoulder, making

everyone freeze; Kaoru with fear, Yahiko and Sano with worry. Though to everyone's surprise, he merely used her to help himself up from the rubble and

walked right by her. The guys ran over to her, asking her if she was alright and she told them yes. "He didn't attack…maybe he's still in there somewhere…We

just have to keep-" "Missy, when he's Battōsai, the Rurouni isn't there. The only reason he didn't attack you was because you are not his target, Erina is."

Sanosuke cut her off, causing more tears to fall because she knew that it was true. Yahiko though, not thinking and only reacting out of anger for Kenshin's

actions, started throwing pieces of wood at him. Freaking out, both Kaoru and Sano tackled him to get him to stop. "Are you crazy! Do you want him to attack

us?!" Sano asked angrily. "Maybe if I…" He stopped talking when he saw Kenshin turn, his death glare now turned towards him. He gulped before Kenshin

slowly turning his attention back towards Erina. The apprentice of the Kamiya Kasshin Ryū sighed in relief that he had not turned into Kenshin's next target.

"What were you thinking?" Sanosuke asked gripping the boys shirt and holding him close, glaring daggers at him. "I-if I hit him in the head hard enough-" "That

he'll turn back to normal? Don't you think with all the blows to the head he has received from Erina that he would have become Rurouni already?!" Sanosuke

cut him off still glaring at him. Yahiko just hung his head in shame. No, he hadn't thought that.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Kenshin charged at Erina once again, though Erina stood her ground, standing in a batto stance. Thoguh when Kenshin swings at her, she removed her hand

from the hilt of her sword and catches Kenshin's blade between her hands. Kenshin's eyes narrowed a bit in irritation before Erina gripped the blade fully and

pulled him a bit closer. He tried to fight it, but she held her grip and small drops of blood dripped from her hands. Then Erina hit Kenshin in the face with her

elbow then right after she pushed his sword and hit him in the throat with the butt of it. She put so much force into the attack that he was tossed onto his back

a foot away. He stayed laying down for a minute, and Erina walked over to him, pointing her sword at his neck and putting a little pressure down, cutting him a

bit. The blood ran down the side of his neck and he glared. He pushed the sword aside and stood up to swing at the female once more to get her to back away

so he could recompose himself. They once again charged at one an other, swinging their blades and creating more sparks once they collided. They proceeded

to swing at eachother, sometimes swinging multiple times, sometimes swinging once, jumping away, then charging at the other once more. It was easy to

follow them at first, but as they continued their onslaught of attacks they enhanced their speed. When they finally paused from their continuous attacks, they

were both breathing heavilly, bleeding from various parts of their bodies. They stared harshly at on another, not even batting an eye. The wind blew and their

hair started to flow with it, though Erina's tie fell off letting her hair blow freely. Kenshin smirked once the wind stopped blowing, complimenting her on her

looks with her hair down. She just spit some blood onto the ground before seemingly disappearing. The male Battōsai's eyes were busy as he searched the

courtyard for his opponent. Though he could not find her. He turned around, maybe she was hiding somewhere? No, she was a proud samurai like himself and

would not lower herself to such trickery. His eyes widened when he sensed a strong chi heading at him. Kenshin turned but could not take a step back quick

enough to fully dodge Erina's blade. His nose got cut a bit but that's not what hurt. No, it was his eyes. Kenshin took a step back, rubbing at his eyes as if he

had gotten something in them. When the burning sensation passed, he opened his eyes only, everything was still dark.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"Meiyo Shūtingusutā Ryū, Chishi Fenikkusu Gyōshi." Erina revealed the technique before licking her blade. She used her god-speed to appear in the air above

Kenshin, swinging down at him and wasn't all that surprised when Kenshin moved his sword and blocked the attack. She disappeared once more, and Kenshin

stood still, moving his head a tad every now and then in different directions. He moved to the side a bit, having Erina's sword just miss him. He had felt the

fabric of what was left of his clothing tear. He tried to dodge another one of her attacks, but ended up being thrown through one of the wall of the main

building. Once again Kenshin had to push rubble off of him and pull himself up into a standing position. It was getting quite annoying that a female was giving

him such a hard time. He searched the grounds for her chi signature, ignoring the others that were there as well. They were not of any importance. His head

snapped to the side when he senced her presence and dodged an oncoming swing of her sword, but just barely because a couple strands of his hair was cut.

The next dew minutes were spent with Kenshin dodging Erina's onslaught of attacks. Though she did get a few hits, but only strong enough to slice his flesh.

After about five minutes of continuous swinging from Erina and dodging from Kenshin, He slowly started to regain his vision. Though at first, it was very blurring

but at least he could see where she was coming from better. When his vision was fully back, he could see the damage they had caused towards him, or more

so, his attire. His shirt was in shreds, so he just ripped the remain off his body, revealing all the cuts he had received during their fight. He had cuts covering

him, many across his chest in different directions, arms had slashes on them, his stomach was slashed up, and the pants near his hips had slices on them but

not enough to lose them. There were also many, many bruises starting to form all over his body; a rather big and dark one on his neck, and some of the cuts

were deep. He was dripping with blood. Though Erina wasn't in any better shape. Her outer uwagi was completely off of her, her under uwagi was cut up

pretty bad, and blood soiled her clothes, cuts on her face and arms where the skin was exposed. As long as bruises of her own appearing. It was time to end

this. They have been at this for almost 3 hours now. The last time a battle lasted this long was against Shishio when his weak Rurouni side was fighting him.

Erina seemed to be thinking the same thing. So he moved into a stance where he stepped with his left leg first instead ot the right, and got ready to use the

secrect signature move of the Hiten Mitsurugi- Ryū. Erina seemed to get into a rather interesting stance as well. She was standing sideways, her hip turned,

and waiting. They then went after each other, both ready to end the battle and claim victory. 

* * *

Y: You idiot! Learn to control yourself!

K: Orororo forgive me Yahiko.

k: I'm just glad you're back to normal.

S: You had us all worried there.

M: Why is it that almost every time I visit I must treat someone?

K: Forgive me, Megumi-dono.

M: Well I guess it can't be helped.

k: Sannai isn't in her room!

M: Are you serious!?

S: She is Lady Battōsai though.

M: That doesn't matter!

K: Next time on Another Battōsai, _The Secret's Out: Erina the Legendary Lady Battōsai_


End file.
